The service is aware of recovery efforts and power outages in Port Orchard and surrounding areas, and wants those still dealing with the effects of Tuesday's tornado to take precautions. She said Kitsap County emergency management officials have been briefed about the new storm rolling this way.

“So that everybody's up to speed on what is coming in,” she said.

The high wind warning was issued for communities from Bellingham to Tacoma -- with Kitsap County between -- from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday.

Winds from 25 mph to 40 mph are expected, with gusts up to 60 mph. Forecasters expect the strongest winds to strike in the late morning to afternoon. Rain is also expected, though not the heavy kind from Tuesday.

Forecasters here face challenges in even tracking tornadoes, Obergfell said, as the radar snapshots are taken on average every five minutes.

Unlike Midwestern tornadoes, which can churn along the ground for a half-hour to an hour, tornadoes in Washington tend to be shorter-lived, lasting a few minutes, allowing them to slip in and out before they can be caught on radar.

“They can cause a lot of damage in a very short amount of time,” she said. “And it happens so rarely around here, people aren’t necessarily prepared or know what to do when it happens.”